Trylove

Featuring special guests Eric Leith (https://twitter.com/unintellivision) and Seth Zarate (https://twitter.com/snzarate)!

THE FACULTY lifts from sci-fi and horror touchstones like ALIEN (1979), THE TERMINATOR (1984), and THE THING (1982), deconstructing classic tropes and even whole scenes in a high school context. It’s not as heady as that makes it sound, but it’s still fun and subversive in a lot of the right ways. In this episode, we discuss the movie’s sense of cheek, great creature effects, stunning cast, and its almost complete commitment to a pro-drugs, anti-authoritarian thesis.

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “The Kids Aren’t Alright” by The Offspring from the THE FACULTY soundtrack.

0:00 - Episode 126: THE FACULTY (1998)

2:44 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary (In Memoriam)

4:20 - Eric’s thoughts

5:31 - Seth’s thoughts

6:22 - Jason’s thoughts

9:38 - Cody’s thoughts

13:14 - Harry’s thoughts

20:46 - Undercutting genre conventions – but at what cost?

39:16 - The garage scene & homages

46:08 - Repression of sexuality

51:26 - A deconstructive reading

54:29 - Power dynamics and why it wasn’t students vs. teachers

1:00:04 - Final thoughts (drugs and stuff)

1:09:33 - Cody’s Noteys (The U-Notey’d States)

Our Polly Platt series comes to an end with one of the producer, production designer, and hitmaker’s best-known works: the ur-teen romcom SAY ANYTHING…

We discuss the movie’s status as romcom classic, the questionable influence of the American dream over the lives of vulnerable youth, whether or not Lloyd Dobler is a simp, and whether or not they should’ve cut the “ding” from the final shot of the movie. IYKYK.

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel from the SAY ANYTHING... soundtrack.

0:00 - Episode 125: SAY ANYTHING… (1989)

1:36 - Is Lloyd Dobler a simp?

5:47 - The episode actually starts

6:31 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary

8:08 - Jason’s thoughts

10:13 - Cody’s thoughts

14:45 - Harry’s thoughts

19:25 - Aaron’s thoughts

22:30 - John Mahoney’s fraying, grifting, lovable dad

29:15 - Just some sympathy for Diane Court

35:51 - Aaron left his hand up in Zencastr and we get his ass for it

43:22 - Should the ding be there at the end of the movie?

58:51 - Spare thoughts

1:06:12 - Cody’s Noteys (Trylibs: Young Romance)

In BOTTLE ROCKET, Wes Anderson focuses on the moments before you realize it’s time to say goodbye – to your friends, your family, the person you thought you were, and the person you thought you’d become. Without his toyetic visual indulgences, Anderson’s style reveals a somewhat more heartfelt version of the real relationships between goofy characters that populate his later movies.

Resources:

- Bottle Rocket (Short Film): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yrt-ZKa4u0k

- Life Underground: an LGBTQ film set in WW1 trenches by Peter Hogenson (Kickstarter) https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/phogenson/life-underground-an-lgbtq-film-set-in-ww1-trenches

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “2000 Man” by The Rolling Stones from the BOTTLE ROCKET soundtrack.

11:42 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary

13:34 - Jason’s thoughts

17:31 - Cody’s thoughts

21:57 - Harry’s thoughts

27:49 - Aaron’s thoughts

31:48 - The feeling of awkwardness made formal

35:07 - Why aren’t Anthony and Dignan just brothers?

47:57 - The ending (almost)

50:12 - Where Bottle Rocket breaks from Wes Anderson’s uppercrust comedy

54:02 - The ending and もののあはれ (mono no aware)

1:04:47 - Spare thoughts

1:15:53 - Cody’s Noteys (How the Wes Was Won)

In this episode, the first non-Boggie in our Polly Platt series, we discuss TERMS OF ENDEARMENT, Albert Brooks’s ‘real’ character drama. We discuss how its core conflicts do (and don’t) round out its characters, how nice it is to see the uncomfortable parts of family relationships portrayed unwincingly (if unconvincingly), and Jack Nicholson’s undeniable, scene-chewing sluttiness.

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “Terms of Endearment Main Theme” by Michael Gore from the TERMS OF ENDEARMENT soundtrack.

5:14 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary

7:27 - Jason’s thoughts

9:26 - Cody’s thoughts

13:10 - Harry’s thoughts

18:55 - Aaron’s thoughts

22:31 - TERMS OF ENDEARMENT, ‘real’ stories, and “that’s just how it is”

28:08 - The mother/daughter relationship

43:27 - Meeting the movie on its own… terms

59:40 - Our favorite funny bits

1:05:00 - Cody’s Noteys (Polly’s Follies)

In Peter Bogdanovich’s THE LAST PICTURE SHOW, two generations in a 1950s Texas town come to grips with the promise of postwar American glory when it turns out to be a myth. In this episode, we discuss how the movie finds its moral center amid a pedestrian malaise, the clear contributions of Polly Platt, and present-day parallels to the real-life cinema facing closure in Uptown Minneapolis.

Resources:

- “Watching The Last Picture Show with Tom Ford” by F.X. Feeney for DGA Quarterly: https://www.dga.org/Craft/DGAQ/All-Articles/1701-Winter-2017/Screening-Room-Last-Picture-Show.aspx

- "R.I.P" by Joseph Larsen for The Historic Uptown Theatre blog: http://uptowntheatre.blogspot.com/2021/06/rip.html

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “Cold, Cold Heart" by Hank Williams from the THE LAST PICTURE SHOW soundtrack.

00:45 - Aaron thinks “segue” is a one-syllable word

3:43 - Remembering the Uptown Theatre

17:19 - Episode 122: THE LAST PICTURE SHOW (1971)

17:50 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary

21:22 - Jason’s thoughts

23:50 - Cody’s thoughts

27:46 - Harry’s thoughts

32:32 - Aaron’s thoughts

35:12 - THE LAST PICTURE SHOW as a coming-of-age story

40:25 - Chaco’s first appearance

40:51 - Lois, Jacy, and what it is to be a woman in society

46:25 - The crushing weight of living shared by generations

1:04:03 - Is THE LAST PICTURE SHOW hard to rewatch?

1:07:56 - Stray thoughts

1:20:12 - Cody’s Noteys (Son of ‘Ovich!)

1:37:56 - Exeunt Chaco

Featuring special guest Jenny Ackerson (https://twitter.com/ackersonjenny)!

The directorial debut of Roger Corman protégé Peter Bogdanovich is a startling, screeching indictment of the past and future of American violence, and what it looks like when they meet in the present. Following the parallel stories of aging classic horror star Byron Orlok (Boris Karloff) and quietly disgruntled, emasculated veteran Bobby Thompson (Tim O’Kelly), TARGETS is a portrait of the low-budget, high-tension filmmaking that would come to define New Hollywood – thanks in no small part to the story ideation and dynamic production design of Polly Platt.

Follow Jenny on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ackersonjenny and on Letterboxd at https://letterboxd.com/jennyack/

Resources:

- You Must Remember This - Bela and Boris Episode 6: Boris Karloff and Roger Corman http://youmustrememberthispodcast.com/episodes/2017/11/20/bela-and-boris-episode-6-boris-karloff-and-roger-corman

- You Must Remember This - Polly Platt: The Invisible Woman http://www.youmustrememberthispodcast.com/episodes/2020/7/pollyplattarchive28

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “The Terror Main Theme" by Ronald Stein from the THE TERROR (1963) soundtrack.

00:00 - Episode 121: TARGETS (1968) (feat. Jenny Ackerson)

3:25 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary

6:09 - Jason’s thoughts

8:00 - Cody’s thoughts

11:57 - Harry’s thoughts

16:27 - Aaron’s thoughts

19:35 - Jenny’s thoughts

21:44 - How the two halves of TARGETS unfold into another

37:01 - The questions TARGETS raises about violence and myth

46:14 - Why TARGETS shows so much of the production

49:33 - The work of Polly Platt in TARGETS

55:07 - The climactic final scene

1:02:53 - Stray thoughts

1:10:07 - Jenny shoots down an offer to intro Cody’s Noteys

1:10:42 - Cody’s Noteys (Trylibs: Fading Star)

As Jacques Tati’s best-remembered film, PLAYTIME is a technical achievement on many levels. The crew built an entire city block, complete with skyscraper façades and cardboard extras, to manufacture a grey, corporatized Paris against which to feature its many layered gags. It’s fitting, then, that the film’s third-act script-flip, which corrals us into a wonderfully chaotic nightclub, feels so freeing. But because the film is neither as pointed as MON ONCLE (1958) nor as dour as TRAFIC (1971), PLAYTIME occasionally feels as plastic as the staged city it wanders through.

Support organizations and causes providing aid to the Palestinian people:

- Medical Aid for Palestinians https://www.map.org.uk/donate/donate

- Palestine Children's Relief Fund https://pcrf1.z2systems.com/np/clients/pcrf1/donation.jsp?campaign=342&

- Palestine Appeal 2021 https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/palestineappeal2020

- HR 2590 https://act.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/a/palestinian-children-families-act

- Stop Jerusalem Expulsions https://secure.everyaction.com/wUAYmd6RzEacXxN3WQuYQQ2

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “L'opéra des jours heureux (Play Time)" by Francis Lemarque from the PLAYTIME soundtrack.

00:00 - Episode 120: PLAYTIME (1967)

2:06 - The patented Aaron Grossman Summary

3:38 - Jason’s thoughts

6:32 - Cody’s thoughts

10:55 - Harry’s thoughts

14:52 - Aaron’s thoughts

20:25 - How architecture corrals society

26:38 - Elevating people above their environment

29:43 - Barbara, Hulot, and the humanity of PLAYTIME

37:20 - All that glass

47:07 - From daytime streets to nighttime interiors

48:50 - Aaron’s science fiction take

53:54 - Stray thoughts

56:44 - Ranking Tati

1:06:18 - Cody’s Noteys (Omelette du Triviá)

What TRAFIC lacks in punchlines, it makes up in pathos. A sidestep from the meticulous comedic craftwork that defined Tati’s masterpieces, it doesn’t feature many of the clever gags seen in MON ONCLE (1958) or LES VACANCES DE MONSIEUR HULOT (1953). It feels a little empty, actually – until you get used to its currents of anti-comedy and high-minded statements about the folly of man and the ways we get around without going anywhere.

Support organizations and causes providing aid to the Palestinian people under attack by the Israeli government:

- Medical Aid for Palestinians https://www.map.org.uk/donate/donate

- Palestine Children's Relief Fund https://pcrf1.z2systems.com/np/clients/pcrf1/donation.jsp?campaign=342&

- Palestine Appeal 2021 https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/palestineappeal2020

- HR 2590 https://act.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/a/palestinian-children-families-act

- Stop Jerusalem Expulsions https://secure.everyaction.com/wUAYmd6RzEacXxN3WQuYQQ2

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “TRAFIC Theme” by Charles Dumont from the TRAFIC soundtrack.

4:53 - The patented Aaron Grossman Summary

6:42 - Jason’s thoughts

9:44 - Cody’s thoughts

13:04 - Harry’s thoughts

18:10 - Aaron’s thoughts

21:21 - Why TRAFIC doesn’t have the warmth of Tati’s best-known movies

30:07 - The missing piece of TRAFIC’s gags

39:17 - The moon landing and the charming dysfunction of humanity

46:49 - What is the point of comedy?

53:21 - Do you pick your nose in the car? Why do hot women love Hulot? & more

1:03:31 - Cody’s Noteys (Tati Trivia)

Maybe because it’s the debut of M. Hulot, LES VACANCES DE MONSIEUR HULOT (MR. HULOT’S HOLIDAY) isn’t quite as consistent, coherent, or radical in its messaging as MON ONCLE (1958). What it IS, however, is a string of great bits and vibes from the French coast. In this episode, we run down our favorite gags from the film, discuss how it distills the bizarre experience of vacationing, ponder its use of sound to show silent film jokes, and spend more than the usual amount of time talking about Mario Tennis.

Support organizations fighting for the survival and protection of Minnesota’s marginalized communities:

-DocumentingMN https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/documentingmn

-Minnesota Freedom Fund https://mnfreedomfund.org/

-Take Action MN https://takeactionminnesota.org/donate/

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Music: “How is the Weather in Paris” by Alain Romans from the LES VACANCES DE MONSIEUR HULOT soundtrack.

3:45 - The patented Aaron Grossman Summary

5:32 - Jason’s thoughts

7:22 - Cody’s thoughts

10:51 - Harry’s thoughts

14:39 - Aaron’s thoughts

18:35 - Our favorite bits

35:36 - Where VACANCES lives in MON ONCLE’s shadow

42:24 - Using sound alongside traditional silent film gags to create something new

57:29 - M. Hulot’s tennis sins

1:07:57 - Cody’s Noteys (Trylibs: Holiday)

M. Hulot isn’t so much a fly in the ointment of the bourgeoisie as a flashlight on the silliest aspects of their way of life. He’s a picture of Franco goofiness rooted in the rural; the chaotic; the human. MON ONCLE is Jacques Tati’s blocking masterclass that maps the geometry of homes, cities, streets, and factories onto the characters that move within them to illustrate the contrast between high society and the commonfolk.

Support organizations fighting for the survival and protection of Minnesota’s marginalized communities:

- DocumentingMN https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/documentingmn

- Minnesota Freedom Fund https://mnfreedomfund.org/

- Take Action MN https://takeactionminnesota.org/donate/

Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at [email protected] to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/.

Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Outro music: “Mon Oncle Theme” by Franck Barcellini from the MON ONCLE soundtrack.

3:09 - The patented Aaron Grossman Summary

5:42 - Jason’s thoughts

8:14 - Cody’s thoughts

13:01 - Harry’s thoughts

17:58 - Aaron’s thoughts

21:42 - The garden party, geometry, and people vs. environment

29:00 - The camera and the audience’s perspective

35:08 - Modernism: promise vs. reality

40:43 - Industrialization, labor, and the progress paradox

43:58 - The comedy of dysfunction reflects the joy of living

57:06 - The ending

59:40 - Cody’s Noteys (Mon Oscars)